Year of New Beer: 2014 The Dissident, Deschutes Brewery (OR)

Written By: Dion on 12/31/2015

A beer I've never had before, every single day, for an entire year. Back on January 1, 2012, that seemed like a tall task. Tonight, as I close out four straight years of New Beer, it seems like I could go on for a while. Over 4000 breweries in the U.S. alone, with more opening almost daily, the options are practically endless. Cellared away for nearly a year, this one greets the nose with tart cherries, red wine-soaked wood, and yeasty funk, all backed by an undercurrent of damp, musty earth. On the tongue is an immediate surge of sour as the fruits seem to move from crabapples to lemons to cherries. Hints of grape, leather, and peppery spiced oak ride through a puckering, dry finish. An interesting but good cap to Year #4. Looking forward to another year of sharing good beer with great people.